Body in river identified as Patrice Zimmerman

Cause of death of Colonie woman is drowning, authorities said

1of6Patrice M. Zimmerman, 59, of Colonie, was reported missing by her family Dec. 14.2of6Police gather near where the Mohawk and Hudson rivers meet in Waterford after the discovery of a body Tuesday morning. Police had been searching for Patrice Zimmerman, a Colonie woman last heard from on Sunday, but they have not identitifed the body. (Skip Dickstein / Times Union)3of6Colonie Police Lt. Robert Winn talks to reporters after a body was found Tuesday in the Mohawk River off of Peebles Island. Police were searching the area after a Honda CR-V owned by Patrice Zimmerman was found in nearby Waterford on Monday. Zimmerman was reported missing early Monday but police have not identified the body they found Wednesday morning. (Bob Gardinier / Times Union)4of6Colonie Police Lt. Robert Winn talks to reporters after a body was found Tuesday in the Mohawk River off of Peebles Island. Police were searching the area after a Honda CR-V owned by Patrice Zimmerman was found in nearby Waterford on Monday. Zimmerman was reported missing early Monday but police have not identified the body they found Wednesday morning. (Bob Gardinier / Times Union)5of6An Albany County coroner's van leaves the scene after a body was found Tuesday in the Mohawk River off of Peebles Island. Police were searching the area after a Honda CR-V owned by Patrice Zimmerman was found in nearby Waterford on Monday. Zimmerman was reported missing early Monday but police have not identified the body they found Wednesday morning. (Bob Gardinier / Times Union)6of6An Albany County coroner's van leaves the scene after a body was found Tuesday in the Mohawk River off of Peebles Island. Police were searching the area after a Honda CR-V owned by Patrice Zimmerman was found in nearby Waterford on Monday. Zimmerman was reported missing early Monday but police have not identified the body they found Wednesday morning. (Bob Gardinier / Times Union)

Waterford

The body found in shallow water near Peebles Island Tuesday was identified as Patrice M. Zimmerman, the Colonie woman reported missing Monday, police said.

Her body was positively identified following an autopsy in the afternoon. The cause of death was determined to be drowning, but the manner of death was pending results of a toxicology report.

Colonie Police Lt. Robert Winn said there were no signs of trauma to the body, that there is no new information that would indicate foul play and that the find is not considered a criminal case.

A State Police helicopter spotted the body a day after Zimmerman's car was found on Front Street. Police said Zimmerman had a cut on her face believed to be responsible for the blood found in her Sutherland Drive house, possibly indicating a fall down a set of stairs.

Rich Gross, who described himself as a close friend of the family, said Zimmerman had planned a surprise birthday party for Gross' wife on Monday night, the day Zimmerman went missing.

"Suicide is out of the question," Gross said. "She had it all together and was an amazing woman. She worked hard on the party and was very much looking forward to it. She had everything and was happy."

The party didn't happen, Gross said. Instead, a number of people went to the river in the area where Zimmerman's car was found. They didn't find anything. "This had to be an accident," Gross said.

Her family had reported her missing at 7:57 a.m. Monday. She was last seen at Lakeridge Development off Watervliet Shaker Road, police said. Winn said Zimmerman was spotted by cameras there at 4:36 a.m. and then arriving at the canal at 5 a.m.

Winn said a bloodhound picked up a scent in the village Monday near Zimmerman's car and followed it to the edge of the Erie Canal and from there to about the middle of a steel through truss bridge that spans the canal and connects Waterford and Peebles Island. The one-lane bridge for cars and pedestrians sits just up the canal from where the body was found in 3 to 5 feet of water along the shore of Peebles Island where the canal flows into the nearby Mohawk River.

Police are reviewing cellular phone traffic, but the last call the woman made on her phone was around bedtime Sunday.

"She called her husband, who was at their house in Florida, to wish him a good night," Winn said. "That was all."

The family was on the scene earlier in the morning, Winn said. An onlooker said they became upset and quickly left when they were given the news of the description of the body.

The activity in Waterford comes at the same time as police in Troy were preparing to resume their search for Noel Alkaramla, 21, which continues into its second week.

She was last seen leaving work on Nov. 22 and police fear her body was stuffed into a suitcase and thrown into the river. Her stepfather is being held on a parole violation, but no one faces charges directly tied to her disappearance.